Combat those midweek blues

The way racing can conjure contrasting emotions was seen to no better effect this week, as the weekend’s thrilling action was marred by the loss of two legends of the sport, Donald ‘Ginger’ McCain and Michael Jarvis. Tom has already made a fitting tribute to the man most famously associated with Grand National, and I’m in no doubt that ‘Rummy’ will be pleased to see him after more than fifteen years, even if the racing world is mourning his loss. Jarvis could not have been cut from a more different cloth than McCain, offering a much less controversial, if equally entertaining, perspective on the game. I’m in no doubt that Roger Varian, the former assistant trainer to Jarvis who took over his license at the start of the season, will continue to do the man proud after making an impressive start to his career. Both men will be sorely missed. 

The preview blog got off to an interesting start on Saturday, with Green Destiny’s victory kicking things off in good style before Mac’s Power highlighted the volatile nature of this game less than an hour later, trailing in second last in the Ayr Gold Cup. I’m hoping to get back on track tomorrow with an each way punt on RED SEVENTY in the 3:55 at Newmarket. Midweek racing is usually the graveyard of the desperate and the daft, but we have been blessed this week with a decent meeting at Goodwood today and the three day Cambridgeshire meeting kicking off at HQ tomorrow. The Group Three in which the selection runs could potentially be a punting minefield, with many of the more fancied runners having impressed in maiden or condition company and are therefore filed in the ‘could be anything’ category. But I’m prepared to take on the market leaders with Richard Hannon’s colt, who won his first two races nicely before finishing seventh of seventh last time out. He definitely lacked luck in that run, being hampered at the furlong pole when steadily making progress without ever looking like winning. The form of his second start stands out most to me though, when the selection had the measure of Poetic Dancer who subsequently finished second in a warm Doncaster nursery. The form of that race was highlighted on Saturday, with fourth placed Roger Sez landing a Group Three ay Ayr, albeit on very testing ground. The main dangers to the son of Sakhee will most likely come from favourite Farraaj, whose Sandown win was franked by Tell Dad at the weekend, and the other Hannon runner, Crius. Many would argue he is the yard’s first string, being partnered by Richard Hughes, but Hannon rarely sends his horses for a parade ring day out. I landed one of my favourite punts when Dick Turpin, partnered by Ryan Moore, pipped his stablemate Canford Cliffs, partnered by Richard Hughes, in last year’s Greenham stakes. From then on in I’ve never been afraid to back the supposed lesser of the two Hannon horses. So with that in mind, Red Seventy makes definite appeal at 16/1.